was dead,’ Imogen said.
‘What did he say about Simon Glover?’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘They used to work together. As soon as he brought up the old job at Corrigan Construction, his demeanour changed completely. He became jumpy and anxious. I got the impression that he killed himself to avoid having to divulge anything else. He had secrets and it was all to do with that job they had together in Exeter. Something must have gone on down there,’ Adrian said.
‘You should have brought him in for questioning. I wish we had the exact words he said on tape. He never should have had that knife,’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘With all due respect, Ma’am, we speak to people in their houses all the time; this is not something we have ever witnessed before. It’s not as if we could have anticipated he was going to do that. It came from nowhere,’ Imogen said.
‘Well, I want both of you to see the counsellor and talk this through.’
‘We’re fine,’ Imogen said, huffing.
‘Then it shouldn’t be a very long session, should it?’ DCI Kapoor replied, conversation over.
‘Yes, Ma’am,’ Adrian said.
‘What did he say then, before he died? What the hell was he hiding?’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘He gave us an envelope with a letter for Fiona Merton inside. A goodbye letter from Simon, saying he was leaving and not to worry about him. We’ve handed it to Gary to match handwriting samples. Quick also gave us a Jiffy bag that had two brand-new passports in there. They were vacuum-packed, but we got one of the forensic techs to open it. They belong to Simon and the woman from the hospital, Jane Doe, but with a false name for him, so we assume for her also.
‘There were also train tickets into London, then Eurostar tickets to Paris, France, and then a flight to Montreal, Canada. Judging by what happened to them, I would say they were running away from someone. When we asked Leon Quick about their time at Corrigan Construction and why they left, he got more and more anxious. That seemed to be the trigger for … what he did. We were in there less than ten minutes,’ Imogen said.
‘Well, brace yourselves. The family liaison officer has been speaking to the Quicks. They are obviously very distressed, said he was fine before you got there but obviously dead when you left. The parents were understandably upset by the whole thing and so the FLO is trying to make sure they are OK and also advise them against lodging a complaint, which they had mentioned. She’s very good, so I am sure it will be fine.
‘Walsh is already looking into Leon Quick to see if he has any history of mental health issues or suicidal tendencies,’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘I just don’t understand what happened. Something we asked him provoked that extreme reaction in him. He looked terrified of something. Then he picked up that knife and stabbed himself. How do you even do that? How do you push a knife into yourself like that?’ Adrian said.
‘I’ve never seen anything like it,’ Imogen said.
‘I just don’t understand what could have been so bad that he would rather kill himself than talk about it. And kill himself like that, too. To just make that decision in that split second like that. I feel sick just thinking about it,’ Adrian said.
‘Do you think he was involved in Simon Glover’s death? Maybe he felt guilty,’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘It didn’t seem so. It wasn’t guilt, it was fear,’ Imogen said.
‘Although he wasn’t surprised, I got the impression he was genuinely upset when we told him what happened to Simon Glover. I don’t think he was involved in his death. No, he was afraid of something or someone. I imagine it’s probably connected to what happened to Glover,’ Adrian said.
‘I can’t be certain, but I think he recognised the woman as well, even though he pretended he didn’t. Our Jane Doe,’ Imogen said.
‘I don’t suppose he told you who she was before he offed himself?’
‘I’m afraid not. It wasn’t long after we showed him the photo that he took his own life,’ Adrian said.
‘Right, well, it’s too late to do anything else today. At least we got the passports; although the chances of us finding out where they came from are pretty slim. Go and write up your reports about what happened, then tomorrow morning go to Corrigan Construction. Maybe you can find out something more,’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘Thank you, Ma’am,’ Imogen said and stood up.
They left DCI Kapoor’s office and went back to their desks. Still shocked. The anguish on Leon’s face played over in Imogen’s mind. The DCI was right; he never should have had that knife. This case got more complicated with every passing moment.
Imogen pulled up the report form onscreen and stared for a moment, unsure where to start.
‘We’ve got two dead bodies and a missing woman,’ Adrian said, breaking Imogen’s trance.
‘But at least we have a lead. Something happened at their last job; you could see it in his eyes. I’ve never seen anyone go from mildly uncomfortable to such extreme agitation so quickly. He was beside himself. Was he distressed about something he had seen? Was he afraid of someone? Whatever it is, the answers are at that construction company.’
‘He was fine when we got there, a little on edge maybe. I just don’t understand what happened,’ Adrian said. ‘Maybe we need to look at why he moved back in with his parents, too? Did he lose his flat, or did he choose to move back home to look after his mother, like he claimed? Was it a financial decision or something else?’
‘We definitely don’t have all the pieces to the puzzle at this point,’ Imogen said, staring at her hands again.
‘Are you OK?’ Adrian said.
‘I just … I don’t understand how anyone could do that. That wasn’t a cry for help. The force he stabbed himself with, he wanted out.’
‘It was crazy.’
‘What could be that bad that he would rather end his life than talk to us about it? He was terrified.’
‘We’ll get the answers eventually. At least we have someone else to work on,’ Adrian said.
‘Where the hell is that woman?’ Imogen said.
In all this, that was the part Imogen had the most trouble understanding. Neither Jane Doe nor Leon Quick would speak. She risked her own life by leaving the hospital to avoid any questioning and Quick ended his for the same reason. Who were these people and how were they connected?
‘Gary said he checked MisPers against her photo; there was no one matching her description reported missing.’
‘How is that possible? Does she not have a mother or father? We assumed she was married, but maybe the ring was something else.’
Adrian leaned closer to Imogen and lowered his voice. ‘Stay at mine tonight? I don’t think either of us want to be alone right now.’
‘You’re not wrong.’
She
